River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1887-06-23
Educating Young Indians.

The very marked improy ement in the
Indian training-school at old Fort Yuma,
| across the river since it came under the
management of the Sisters of Charity,
is certainly gratifying to the Indian de
partment and to the friends Of the In
dams generally, says the Yuma Senti-
mel.
The Yumas, luckily small tribe, are
among the very poorest and most ig-
norant of all the Indians, and to make
any intellectual impression upon them
would seem almost a hopeless task.
Yet the last eight or nine months under
the Sisters careful treatment the chill
dren, wholly in their keeping, have
made considerable progress in their
books and a marvellous change in their
| personal appearance and habits of life
| They are now a well-dressed, Beat, clean
and cheerful set of young Indians,
whereas before they came to the school
they were roaming around in squalid
poverty and nakedness
The very competent, energetic, and
efficient superintendent, Col. /. p
Riley; paid visit of inspection to this
interesting school last Monday. He
gave the children, through the assis-
tsnce of an interpreter, long, practic-
al, and sensible talk, which seemed to
be thoroughly understood by his young
auditors, and was thoroughly appreci-
ated by Pasqual, the venerable chief of
the tribe, who, being present. arose at
the conclusion of Col Riley's remarks,
and in eloquent terms sought to impress
authoritatively, the advice and instruc-
ton they had just received.
The primary object of all the Indian
schools being to teach the young to
speak the English language, at the
close of the old chiefs remarks Col
Riley gave few illustrations of teach
| ing the structure of sentences by COM
| bination of objects in a way the chill
dren thoroughly understood, which had
the happy result of showing them they
could soon speak the English language
with little effort. He then offered a
first and second prize to be given at the
close of the session to the two pupils,
boys or girls, who could at that time
speak the most English, provided their
| department and habits met the approx.
al of their teachers. The offer, we are
| informed, has created considerable en-
ulation, and several are striving to be
successful
Although there are over seventy chill
dren in the school, Col. Riley asked
Pasqual why the others-about one
undred-remained away. He replied
that there were four causes that moro
or less entered into the answer TO that
question. In the first place, many of
the parents and grandparents of the
children are poor and feeble. The gov
eminent gaA them no assistance and
the children were poor and feeble. The
children had to contribute their labor
to their support, and that many were
DESTROYS to come, but on that account
could not. In the second place, many
parents feared that this school was but
a preliminary step to having the chill
dren finally removed to some other
school in the east Thirdly, that when
the question was successfully solved
that their children could be taught to
read and write English, add figures,
ETC., he would then be willing for them
to cut their hair and adopt the customs
and habits of civilized life, but not I'M
til then. If he lived to see the present
experiment a success he would cheer
fully embrace it, and so would his tribe.
In the fourth place, he would not ask
the government for assistance, but